Overview
Casa Bandola transforms strict regulations and a limited budget into a compact tropical retreat where structure, climate, and material truth define the architecture.
Casa Bandola
Located in Jacó, Costa Rica, within a townhouse condominium governed by restrictive and largely decontextualized design rules, the project occupies a reduced footprint in a dense residential fabric. Positioned along the central Pacific coast, Jacó functions as a strategic hub connecting multiple tourist destinations, making the house both a private getaway and a flexible vacation rental. The client’s ambition was to create a space for leisure that felt authentic, durable, and climatically responsive, while working within tight economic and regulatory constraints.
Design
The design responds with a disciplined architectural language rooted in tropical modernism. A clear structural system organizes the project: a solid upper volume rests on exposed circular concrete columns, lifting the private areas above the ground plane. The beams are integrated within the slabs, allowing ceilings to read as continuous planes and reinforcing a sense of spatial precision. Structure is not concealed but articulated, giving the house its identity and proportion.
The ground level remains open and permeable, connecting the social areas directly to a compact courtyard and plunge pool. Large openings promote cross-ventilation and draw natural light deep into the plan, reducing dependence on mechanical cooling. The reinforced concrete frame provides thermal mass, stabilizing interior temperatures in the tropical climate and contributing to passive comfort.
Material selection follows a principle of honesty. There are no applied finishes simulating other materials; concrete remains concrete, wood remains wood, and brick expresses its natural texture and color. The gray structure stage effectively becomes the final finish, as walls and systems were carefully coordinated from the outset to eliminate unnecessary cladding. Construction modules align precisely: concrete block joints correspond with wooden door divisions, and electrical fixtures are positioned according to the block grid. Each surface carries texture and intention, avoiding neutrality or excess.
Through structural clarity, environmental responsiveness, and rigorous coordination, Casa Bandola demonstrates how constraint can produce coherence. The project proposes a restrained yet expressive tropical architecture in which form follows structure, and material truth shapes the experience of everyday life.
Project info
Year: 2026
Jacó, Costa Rica.
Architecture, interior design, and landscaping: pasapera.cr
Structural engineering: Sotela Alfaro
Electromechanical engineering: Dynamo
Construction Company: Edificaciones e Infraestructura Hidalgo S.A.
Photography: Arq. Michael Córdoba
Contact
Call us Toll-Free
